According to a macabre claim by the Russian Telegram communication channel “VChK-OGPU”, o Ramzan Kadyrov allegedly buried alive the vice president of his government and personal doctor, Elkhan Suleimanov, amid claims by the Chechen warlord that he was poisoning him.

Elkhan Suleimanov, a close associate of Ramzan Kadyrov, has disappeared and is feared dead amid claims he poisoned the Chechen warlord, according to reports from Russia.

Elkhan Suleimanov, 49, Kadyrov’s close friend and doctor, served as Minister of Health and Deputy Prime Minister of Chechnya. He has stopped posting on Instagram for a year and has not been seen or heard from since, the Daily Mail reports.

The health of 46-year-old Kadyrov, who has sent tens of thousands of his troops to fight in Ukraine, has been the subject of speculation that he is terminally ill.

According to a Telegram channel citing sources in the security forces, Kadyrov attributed his health problems to Suleimanov and accused him of poisoning him.

If Kadyrov, who is a top Putin ally and has a reputation for brutality, suspected the doctor had poisoned him, then he is unlikely to have shown mercy.